Wednesday, October 21, 2009

SACRAMENTO - With the use of state-of-the-art technology, parole agents with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) arrested 35 sex offenders during compliance checks at six fairs this summer.

Those compliance checks resulted in the arrest of 14 sex offenders at the Los Angeles County Fair, eight at the Orange County Fair, five at the California State Fair in Sacramento, two each at the Del Mar Fair, San Joaquin County Fair and Strawberry Festival in Garden Grove, and one each at the Placer and Tehama county fairs.

Using Global Positioning System (GPS) technology, agents created an exclusion zone around the perimeter of the fairgrounds to alert agents of any parolee sex offender entering the zone.

“We are very pleased with the results and plan to continue such efforts to promote and ensure public safety at these types of venues in the future,” said Robert Ambroselli, the Acting Director for CDCR’s Division of Adult Parole Operations.

California’s parole division utilizes GPS technology to track and monitor sex offenders on parole. California is the nation's leader in using GPS technology to track sex offenders with approximately 7,000 individuals under the direct supervision of CDCR parole agents. In addition, the system is used to ensure parole compliance at events like fair, conventions, and other locations where adults and children congregate.

This year, any sex offender parolee on GPS monitoring who entered the fair, set off an alert notifying agents of their presence. Once the notification was received, on-site agents would track offender movements to determine if any parole conditions specific to that parolee were being violated.

“It’s important for sex offenders on parole to understand that we are intent on keeping close supervision on their movement and actions in the interest of protecting public safety,” added Ambroselli. “It would be in their best interest to stay away from events where families with children may congregate.”

CDCR’s use of current technology such as GPS and working in partnership with local law enforcement is helping improve public safety throughout the state.